Blood Is Stronger Then Life
by Hotaru Winner
Summary: A kind of closure to the MK Conquest series...a tale of a girl and her quest for vengence.


*Prologue*

  
  


Jeneina stood outside her home, watching the three strangers being tied up to be sacrificed to her people's god, Sha Ka. She was about fourteen with golden brown hair and topaz colored eyes. She was tall and thin but not too skinny for her height. She was pretty but nowhere near beautiful. Her features were much too masculine to match her feminine curves. She had seen the sacrifices before and they didn't bother her anymore, even after her own father had been taken as a gift for their god. It was just a way of life, pleasing the gods and helping them achieve their passage into the world required human blood and organs. The three of them were not like the others though. The taller, broader, man held himself with an unbreakable strength. His brown eyes seemed to taunt everyone saying, without words, that no matter how hard they tried, he would never give up until the end. The red-haired woman seemed to have more experience in situations like that. She was trying to undo the knots holding them together. The last one, a medium height, black haired, dark eyed man, seemed to be totally unaware of what was happening. He was gazing up into the sky as if he was waiting for someone to appear and save them. Her mother came up behind her "It doesn't do any good to pity them. Sha Ka demands the sacrifices to return to his people." She studied the three people "Although it is too bad that Kung Lao had to be among them."

"Who's Kung Lao?" Jeni asked

"Your cousin." Her mother replied "The woman is a thief and the man is a retired bodyguard. Sha Ka demanded their lives in return for his returning." She took one last look at them "Too bad."

Later that day, it came to be known that the three prisoners had escaped and their God was in conference with Sha Ka. Jeneina began to see the light on their culture and way of life. If Sha Ka wasn't the god of earth and goodness, then what was he? Late one night, she snuck out and tried to hunt the three strangers down. After all, she was kin to one of them. Days later, she found herself in Shu-zin, the city where she suspected they came from. After asking around, she ended up at the trading post where she was told they lived. "Hello?" She called tentatively "Is anyone here?" She was answered with a deathly silence. All around her, things were scattered on the ground. The place looked as if it had been abandoned for years. "Kung Lao?" She called up the stairs. 

Something shiny on the floor caught her attention. She picked it up and dusted it off. It was a silver dragon medallion, identical to the ones that the Mortal Kombat champions received. The last champion had supposedly saved the earth realm from destruction, if the medallion was here and not with Sha Ka. She gasped, Sha Ka was evil, she and her people had been worshiping an evil being. She had to hurry and get back to warn them. If Sha Ka was going to be returning with the death of the three strangers. She shoved the medallion in her dress pocket and started running back for her village. 

By the time she got back, she knew she was too late. The black-clad men who were the messengers of Sha-Ka were upon them. Choking back a sob, Jeneina took out the medallion and held it up to the sky "You're spirit will live on." She swore "I'll give my life to that. Your death will be avenged and your legacy shall be continued. One of the black warriors held his shirt triumphantly in the air. Jeneina let a single tear fall onto the medallion before hanging it around her neck. "My cousin." She whispered before vanishing into the woods.

____________________

Three months later

____________________

  
  


As it had been promised, Shao Kahn had come to the earth to bring his evil prophecies with him. The illiterate people of the village welcomed him with open arms, not knowing that they were allowing evil to flourish within their walls. Jeneina had vanished after the three strangers had been taken as a sacrifice. No one in the village seemed to care, to them she was just another worshiper who could easily be replaced. 

Shao Kahn unleashed his forces over the planet, enclosing all the inhabitants of the planet on a large island in the ocean while he used his powers to bring all the land masses together. The Shadow Priests began their quest of searching out all those who managed to escape the first gathering. Jeneina began her new life as a runaway, as a traitor to her clan.

She woke up suddenly, hearing low voices below her. The seaside cave had seemed like a good idea at the time. It was far enough away from the empire so she wouldn't be found easily but close enough not to seem suspicious. She had been sleeping there for the past week after her last home had been invaded. Now it looked like she was going to have to move again. Unlike all of the others that had foolishly roamed out in the open, she was always well hidden. Her attire was always corresponding with her environment and she was always on the lookout.

The shadow priests floated around the inside of the cave. "There is a life force here." one of them said, his voice low. 

"Yes," another agreed "Shao Kahn is never wrong."

Jeneina sank down behind the rock and looked frantically around for a way out. "Spread out." The third priest commanded "They must not be allowed to escape."

Jeni breathed a silent sigh of relief, although they were all still in her home, they hadn't noticed the small natural hidden ledge that she was perched on. Hoping for the best, she began to creep towards the cave entrance, knowing that if they found her, her quest for Kung Lao's vengeance would be over. "Wait." One of them called out suddenly "Movement, did you feel it."

"They must not be allowed to leave this cave." The third one repeated "Keep looking."

Jeni eyed the passage to freedom. She would have to do this carefully, one slip-up and it could cost her freedom. The three priests were at the back of the cave, their backs to her. Jeneina took a deep breath and inaudibly ran into the bright daylight. She didn't look back, didn't look forward. All that mattered at that moment was getting to safety. All that day and all the next she was running, trying to find a different spot to call her own for awhile. 

Finally, she came upon a pile of fallen trees which had space enough for a human body underneath them but to find the person there, one would have to have the eyes of an eagle. Brush and moss had covered the pile almost completely invisible to the human eye. Sighing with exhaustion and sinking down onto the ground, Jeneina fell into a deep sleep which would last for days.

A sharp pain in her side woke her eventually. Another girl, around the same age, blonde haired, stood above her, hands on hips, glaring down with piercing blue eyes. "What do you think you're doing?" The girl demanded "How did you find this place?"

Jeni crawled out and got up "I'm sorry, I didn't know you stayed here, no one was around when I found it."

The blonde's expression softened momentarily but was quickly replaced by a cold scowl. "Now that I'm back, you can leave. Go back to wherever you came from."

Jeni glared defiantly at her, "For one, I can't go back and for another, I don't see where you get off trying to give me all these orders when I don't even know you."

"What's your name?" The girl asked, keeping the same granite features

"Why should I tell you?" Jeni asked "For all I know you could run from here straight back to Shao Kahn and ruin everything I've tried to work for."

"You've got spirit. My name's Anele, I'm not one of his spies and would rather die then be forced to. He's a distant uncle but I normally don't acknowledge that part of the family."

"But he's a God." Jeni argued "If you're his niece then that would make you a minor god in some way."

"Very minor." Anele agreed "But I have enough power to get by. Now what's your name."

"Jeneina." Jeni replied 

Anele turned and began to walk off but turned back "Coming?" She asked

"What?" Jeneina asked, completely confused

"First thing you need to know if you want to be able to survive as a runaway. Never stay in one place more then a night at a time and always keep your pursuers guessing your next move."

Jeni got up and followed the girl into the forest. She seemed to know more about being on her own as a traitor to society more then Jeni ever would. 

Days passed and although the two girls became closer, one could call them most anything but friends. Jeneina found out the Anele was the only daughter, and forgotten at that, of the thunder god, Raiden. Her family had been killed by Shao Kahn and his servant Sheeva when Anele was only ten. She had been roaming the earth ever since, a long seven years. Jeni had been on her own for barely one. 

Anele was on the same quest that Jeni was on. They both were after the one key that could drive Shao Kahn out of their world and back into his. Anele knew what the key was but refused to tell Jeneina what it looked like. "You'll know when you see it." Was all she would say. 

They wandered from place to place, searching for the key. Anele had no idea where it might be located or if it was still in existence. For all the two of them knew, their search could be in vain. 

"Look," Anele said "all we're doing here is getting in, looking around, and then getting back out. Don't get distracted and don't let anybody see you."

The two of them scaled the wall surrounding the small village. The early morning mist seemed to float through the narrow streets, giving the whole place a mystical, serene kind of feeling. Anele immediately vanished, leaving Jeneina to fend for herself. She began to wander aimlessly through the small yards in back of every house. Finally her curiosity got the better of her. She crept to a window and peered inside.

Jeni studied the people carefully, for captives they seemed very well taken care of. The sound of laughter came from many of the homes lining the streets. She sighed, how long had it been since she had heard the sound of other people's joy and ecstasy. Too long, she concluded, watching a girl, younger then herself, rock a drowsy baby to sleep while the father laid a loving hand on her shoulder.

"Did you find anything?" Anele's low voice came from behind her.

Jeni spun around guiltily "I must have forgotten to look." Her voice drained off "I just-"

"Got too preoccupied with the lives of people that should mean nothing to you." Anele sighed "Sometimes I worry about you. If you keep getting this distracted, we'll never find the key that could throw Shao Kahn back to his realm."

"What is it that we're looking for?" Jeni asked "You keep telling me that I'll know when I see it but I haven't seen anything yet that jumps out."

"I'll tell you when the time is right." Anele whispered "Now is not that time."

"What are you doing here?" A strong masculine voice cut through their conversation.

"Run!" Anele hissed, rolling away and vanishing through the blanket of mist. 

Jeneina attempted to follow but a firm hand grasped her shoulder making her fall to the ground. Hitting her head on a sharp rock, fell unconscious at the feet of a stranger.

*****

When she finally woke up, he was sitting on the floor, his back to her, stirring a pot of something that was hanging over the fire. Great, she thought, I had to fall into the hands of a cannibal. She reached up and touched the bump on her head, that was now covered with a piece of cloth. When her fingers brushed it, she let out a loud moan as the pain raced through her body.

The man looked over at her quickly "Don't do that!" He exclaimed, walking over to her "You split your skull open when you fell."

"I can feel that much." Jeni grumbled, shifting around uncomfortably on the blankets that were on a pile of straw.

"Can you stay awake for awhile?" He asked, when she nodded he took a deep breath "Who are you, where did you come from, what are you doing here, how did you get in here, who was that other girl with you, and why in the name of Raiden were you spying on my sister?"

"My name is Jeneina, I'm from a small village located several miles from Shu-zin, I don't know what I'm doing here, I can't tell you how I got in or who my friend is and I didn't even know that was your sister. Happy?" 

He smiled for the first time "My name is Adrian."

She stared at him in astonishment "First you're treating me like a fugitive and now you're smiling?" She asked "What's wrong with you."

"Nothing." He said "I just wanted to see if you're really as much of a renegade as you pretend to be."

"Am I?" She asked sarcastically

"Not even close, if you were, you wouldn't have told me anything that you just said. A true outlaw would rather give their life before telling anyone anything."

The pot over the fire began to bubble over. Adrian moved over to it and ladled out a bowl of whatever was in it. "Drink this." He said, handing the dish to her

Jeneina took small sips of the broth, never taking her eyes off of the strange man that had taken her into his home. He was handsome with wavy dark brown hair and deep, velvety brown eyes. He was taller then she was and with very broad shoulders going down to narrow hips. He carried himself with confidence but far from arrogance. He had a dimple on his right cheek that made his warm smile seem even more immobilizing. He was obviously in his early twenties, having a kind of knowledge about him that indicated age with experience. "Is something the matter?" He asked

She shook her head in the negative. "Just trying to figure out a way to get out of here."

He chuckled "I wouldn't try it for awhile. You need to stay quiet and still for a couple of days until your head gets better. Right now if you tried to get away, I'd give you to the front door before you faint again."

"What am I supposed to do until it heals?" She demanded

"Well for starters you could tell me more about yourself." He settled down next to her "Whatever you say will stay between the two of us."

"How can I be sure that I can trust you?" She asked

"You can't but if you don't learn to trust people you're going to have a very lonely life."

Jeni sighed "I've just turned fifteen and I'm a runaway."

"From who?" 

"From everyone." She cried "I ran away from my clan about a year ago after I saw that their ways were evil. I've been trying to avenge my cousin's death. He was murdered to give Shao Kahn passage and control in this world."

"What was your cousin's name?" asked Adrian

"Kung Lao." She replied "He was the last Mortal Kombat champion."

"You really do need to be careful." He advised "Shao Kahn has willed it that any member of his immediate or extended family should be executed on the spot."

"You mean I'm the only one left!" She exclaimed

"You're the only one they haven't found yet. He has a special band of shadow priests out searching specifically for you."

"Great, as if I didn't have enough to worry about."

He began to laugh, a sound that seemed to echo from ever corner and fill the room. "What kind of person are you?" He asked

"A traitor to life, someone who will be forced to roam the earth for the rest of her life."

"Want any company?" He asked 

"What do you mean?" She asked, bewildered and dazed at what she guessed he was saying.

"I want to get out of here and really live my life. I want to see the world and all of the other kinds of people in it. I have always wanted to explore and learn about this realm and it's inhabitants first hand. I'll never get to live out my dream behind these walls."

"There's not much to see." Jeneina told him "Everyone is living in basically the same kinds of shelters you are in. What culture that different groups of people had is dead."

"But can't you see?" He asked excitedly "That's what is visible on the outside but when you look inside, you can find the aspects of the societies in the people. Parents telling their children stories of their ancestors, the clothing, the food, the ways of speaking. The different ways of life are preserved in them."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked "We'll be on the run and always be in danger."

"I don't care, there is no life locked up like a caged animal. If I end up dying I want to have it happen after I get to really live."

"We'll leave in a couple of days." Jeneina promised

***********

Later on that week, after packing two bags with blankets, food and extra clothing, the two of them crept through the dark night. The ebony blackness concealed their cautious frames from any human's vision. Jeni led him to the back of the wall where a brick poking out of the side allowed them to scale the barrier blocking every other person from the freedom the two of them had achieved.

"Are you alright?" Adrian asked when they stopped to rest for awhile.

"A little dizzy but I'll be fine in a few minutes." Jeni sat down and leaned back against a tree.

"Don't worry about anything." Adrian shifted the bags and picked her up 

"What do you think you're doing!" Jeni cried out, her voice low

"Saving us the trouble of having you faint again." He began to walk further into the forest. Jeni kept her body tense, the slightest movement of his hands would have made her spring up and run away, never looking back. Instead, she rested her head against his chest and shut her eyes, submitting to the drowsiness that had been haunting her since they had escaped.

Before they knew it, Jeneina and Adrian became companions, friends, and eventually lovers. He was just what she had wanted in her life, a man that not only loved her for who she was, but respected every part of her personality and attitude. Her independent, careful nature seemed to fascinate him even more. She loved him back with all of her mind, heart, and soul. He treated her like a person, not as the weak woman most others would have. He let her think, act, and be herself without trying to change anything about her. He joined her on her quest for revenge, giving her his vow of undying, everlasting devotion and a declaration of eternal love and friendship.

One morning, months after they had left, Jeni woke up early to feel her stomach churning. She slipped out of Adrian's embrace and wandered away before throwing up the food they had eaten the day before. Before she could regain her composure, it happened again and again. She sank down next to the river to rinse out her mouth and splash water on her face. This was the seventh time that month that she had gotten sick. 

"Are you alright?" Adrian asked, kneeling down beside her "How many times does this make?"

"Seven." She murmured

"Love, I didn't want to believe it at first, but it looks like you're going to have a baby."

She looked up at him in disbelief "How can you be sure?" She asked

"You're acting and looking just like my sister did before she had Daniel. I can't tell how far along you are but it does look that way."

"But how did it happen?" She cried 

"Shhh." He comforted "Trust me, we did everything needed. Didn't your mother ever explain to you anything about what goes on between a man and woman." 

She shook her head miserably "I ran away before she could."

"Don't worry, I'll tell you everything but before we do that, we've got to find a place to stay temporarily."

"For how long?" She asked, resting her head against his shoulder

"Until our baby is born." He replied "It's not safe for you or the baby to keep moving around like this."

"But it's not safe to stay in one place either." She protested weakly

"Don't worry, I'll never let anyone hurt you."

________________

7 months later

________________

  
  


"It should be any day now." Adrian said

"I hope so." Jeni replied "I don't want to stay here much longer, it doesn't feel safe any longer." She glanced warily up at the only entrance to their underground cave. Adrian had dug it out. It was big enough to fit their bed and the two of them with room to spare. They had been their for the past six months and at first it had seemed like a good idea but now...

Jeni sat straight up. "Adrian I think it's time."

He knelt down next to her and laid a hand on her stomach "Don't worry, you'll be fine."

"Do you know anything about delivering babies?" She cried out

"No but there's no better time to learn."

"Oh brother, you two really are hopeless." A familiar voice came from the entrance

"Anele." Jeni cried out weakly "Can you help?"

"Unfortunately I can. Too many other stupid fools have been sucked into the same situation that you two are in. Funny, I run off thinking that you're right behind me and then find you living in a hole with a stomach the size of a meteor."

Jeni screamed and then fell into a blackness where she was surrounded by pain and flashing red lights. Anele was giving instructions to Adrian but their voices seemed far away. She felt a final burst of pain and then a calming peace took over her body, leading her back to her world of sleep and comfort.

When she woke up, she spotted a small bundle sitting on her stomach "It's a boy." Adrian cried

"Liu Kang." She mumbled, incoherently "My baby boy." She sank back into her world of unconsciousness.

"Did she wake up?" Anele asked

Adrian nodded "She named him Liu Kang."

Anele shrugged, but took out the needle and dye used to tattoo every newborn with their name. By the time she was done, Jeneina had awoken again.

"Liu Kang?" She wailed "I wanted to name him Kung Lao."

"That's what you mumbled so that's what we thought to name him." Adrian replied "He's already been tattooed so the name is his forever."

"Are you two coming?" Anele demanded "It's not safe here anymore with all the noise you made. I'll take the baby, you carry her." She directed Adrian

The four of them set out. For days everything went as it had before until they were surprised by Shao Kahn's forces.

Anele tossed the basket into the bushes and pulled out her hunting dagger. She tossed it to Adrian and then began to fight off the priests using her hand to hand combat. 

Adrian had received the knife too late. One of the priests had already sliced open his chest and he laid in a pool of his own blood on the ground. "Noooo." Jeni cried, sinking to his side "Adrian, you can't leave me."

He gazed up into her tear filled eyes. "Take care of our baby." He gasped "I'll always love you." His head rolled to the side and he fell silent. 

Jeneina fell on top of his motionless body sobbing. She was kicked out of the way by the same figure that had taken the life of her one love, her only love. Her eyes widened as he took out the same sword that was stained with Adrian's blood. He wiped it off and let the red life-giving substance drip to the ground. Jeni stuck her hand into her pocket and wrapped her fingers around the medallion that had never left her. "Give me strength." She whispered before yanking the dagger out of Adrian's grasp and sinking it into the heart of the surprised priest. "An eye for an eye, a leg for a leg, a life for a life." Her eyes overflowed with the salty tears as she dragged the dagger down "A broken heart for a broken heart."

"Jeni watch out!!!" Anele screamed

Jeneina whirled around only to have the third priest sink his sword into her chest. Jeni grasped the bleeding wound and hauled her dying body over to Adrian's. She took her bloodied fingers and twined them with his "Together forever." She whispered before her lungs pushed out the last breath they would ever take, her eyes shut forever and her heart took it's last lonely beat, letting her leave the world that had betrayed her and allowed her to reunite with the only love of her life.

Seeing their quest completed, the priests vanished, leaving the remainder of their battle scattered on the ground. Anele picked herself up "The baby." She whispered, crawling over to the bushes. 

Liu Kang was still in the basket, his legs kicking and him blowing spit bubbles. "At least you're alright." She murmured "Your parents aren't."

She picked him up and walked over to Jeni. A flash of silver caught her attention, just as it had for Jeneina years before. She took the dragon medallion "What do you know." She said astonished "She had the key all along."


End file.
